Bull’s Eye
by sexyspork
Summary: [Sara centric] She hadn’t hesitated when she pulled the trigger, but now she has to deal with the aftermath with a little help from the last person she thought would understand.


Title: Bull's Eye

By sexyspork

Rating: PG

Spoiler: Allusions to Season 1's _Unfriendly Skies_

Warning: Sara friendly.

Summary: She hadn't hesitated when she pulled the trigger, but now she has to deal with the aftermath with a little help from the last person she thought would understand.

What, not only does this have no Nicky, it's PG and has no slash //le gasp// Blasphemy!

_Unfriendly Skies_ was the episode where Sara said she'd never take a life. I can't remember if she actually ends up firing her weapon, so if there is an epi that deals with this, it doesn't exist in Swami's world //pulls on swami hat//

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Sara couldn't stop staring at her hands. In the back of her mind, she noted that they were a bit too dry (_a side-effect of wearing latex gloves so often_) and her nails were cracked, and some moisturizer would definitely help. Maybe this weekend she'd go and have a manicure done.

Rubbing her hands together slightly, they continued to hold her focus as employees of the LVCL scuttled around her in the locker-room as shift had just finished. It was quite easy to ignore them all, but they were tempting Sara's short temper with the fact they were either staring at her in abject fascination or walking around her as if she was made of glass. And when the last locker finally closed shut, Sara breathed a small sigh of relief.

A small knock of the door made her look up from her poorly cared for hands. Grissom stood at the door, hesitant and unsure because he was just as bad at things like this as she was.

"You've been given a week of leave."

A bitter smile twisted her lips and she had to bite back hysterical laughter. There was going to be an internal investigation, and now she couldn't be anywhere near the case.

"Will," He paused, and Sara couldn't help but find it ironic that with all the quotes he knew, Grissom couldn't find words of his own. "Do you need to talk?"

"No." She said with a humorless smile. "I'll be fine."

Grissom watched her with concerned blue eyes before he nodded and left her to her thoughts.

Sara slumped, cradling her face in her hands as she sat on the bench, trying to still the trembles in her shoulders. However, it was the smell of gunpowder on her palms that made her gag, and Sara let them drop between her knees and she tried to control her wildly swinging emotions.

It was the opening of a locker that made her start. Sara opened her eyes to see the blue lab-coat back of David Hodges. She tensed when he paused, praying that he'd stay quiet and leave her the hell alone. She didn't want to talk, didn't want to hear any weird childhood stories, and didn't want to be asked questions that made her remember the fear in Nick's eyes and the way her gun felt in her hands.

"When I was nine, I made a promise to myself to never take another's life."

Sara paused, his soft, soothing tone catching her attention and holding it. Hodges was pulling off his lab-coat as he continued to talk.

"Before I transferred here, but after I left the LA crime lab, I decided to go visit my family on sabbatical. They live in Moscow during the summer, and the weeks I was there I watched over my niece in loco parentis." (1)

Sara was transfixed, unable to tear her gaze away from Hodges slim form as he weaved his tale skillfully. A small, harsh laugh filled the small room as he continued to speak.

"It was late, and my niece an' I were the only ones home at the time. I was putting her down to bed when a group of men broke into the house. When one of them threatened her, I put a bullet between his eyes."

Hodges pulled a jacket out of his locker, back still turned as he refused to look her in the eye.

"It wasn't even a conscious decision, he lunged at her and I reacted. And even if I _had_ been thinking, I probably would have done the same thing. Because she is my niece and I would do anything to keep her safe."

He went quiet, and Sara didn't have to see his face to know he was struggling to find the right words to say. Because David Hodges was just as socially inept as she and Grissom were (_maybe even worse than the two CSI_), and all the babbling in the world couldn't help him in a situation like this.

"Promises mean nothing. And even though I took a man's life that night, my niece was given the chance to live her own. And I do not regret that."

He turned around, blue eyes drilling into her and Sara was strongly reminded of the look in Nick's eye when the man leveled his gun at the CSI. Fear and strength intermingled as one, overshadowed by resignation and without a trace of regret to be found. It was the look that had made Sara act without thinking, reacting on instinct when his life was in danger. Because Nicky had been put through enough shit already and she refused to allow anything else happen to the man she considered her older brother.

Sara glanced down at her hands, and then looked back up, only to be surprised that Hodges had shut his locker and was heading towards the door.

_No regrets._

"What's her name?" Sara finally asked, unable to say the _thank you_ lodged in her throat.

Hodges turned around to look her in the face, this time blue eyes were guarded. Sara wasn't sure what she was being evaluated for, but was glad when tense shoulders relaxed ever so slightly.

"Sasha," He paused, digging out an ancient battered leather wallet from his back pocket, "she just turned eleven."

He pulled out a picture that had to be a couple years old, and in it was a smirking David Hodges (_Sara wondered if he had any expressions other than arrogant and irritated_) with a small black-haired, blue-eyed girl grinning broadly as she clung to his neck.

"She's cute. Good thing she didn't take after you."

The look he gave her could have melted glass, but Sara caught the underlying relief. He obviously hadn't known what the hell he was doing when talking to her earlier, but snark he could deal with.

"I'll have you know that Hodges get better with every generation; smarter and sneakier than the last."

"You're family holds sneakiness as a desired trait?"

Hodges smirked, but didn't deign a reply, which roused Sara's curiosity. Now she was going to bug him for the rest of his life until she got an answer. For now, however, Sara watched him turn around and head to the door. And when his hand was on the handle, she couldn't stop the smile from crossing her face.

"See you tomorrow…David."

Sara couldn't see his face, but because David Hodges was an incredibly animated person, she did see a new spring in his step. And when he was finally gone, Sara glanced down at her hands and decided she liked them exactly the way they were.

But buying some new moisturizer really wouldn't hurt…

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Because I didn't exactly agree with Sara in that episode. And this fic takes place in a universe that I'm developing where David is the youngest son of a mafia family. And Ecklie is Sasha's Daddy. XD

(1) in loco parentis – basically temporary guardianship of a child in the place of a parent. I won't bore you with theories of education (as an education major, I did spaz when Grissom quoted Maslow in _Stalker_ even though I disagreed with him…) but if you are interested, details can be found here.


End file.
